Amanda Sophia’s article in our brand-new Summer 2020 issue was a beautiful reflection on learning how to flow and finding our resilience. We’ve shared a sneak peek of her reflection below. Read it and enjoy!
Feng Shui expert and inspirational speaker Amanda Sophia (formerly known as Amanda Collins) is one of our amazing regular writers, and we love to read her wisdom in every issue. Check out her Spring 2020 article below!
By Amanda Collins
Feng Shui is all about having the most supportive, inspiring and healthiest home. One of the first steps to achieving these Feng Shui goals is to give your home a really good cleaning. But because Feng Shui also means living in harmony with the earth, your cleaning should use natural organic products that honour and nurture that
relationship.
Using natural home cleaning products supports the sense of smell. Many cleaning products include natural essential oils, and thus will make your home smell nice by offering an ‘aromatherapy’ effect. Lavender is a natural disinfectant. Imagine getting your home clean while enjoying that beautiful relaxing aroma. You can even add a few drops to your clothes before they go into the dryer or a few drops in the vacuum cleaner.
Lemon is another magical essential oil. You can use a few drops on stains on your clothes, or add a few drops to a gallon of water when mopping your tile floors. Tea tree essential oil offers antibacterial, antiseptic and antifungal properties. It works especially well to get rid of mildew and mould around the house.
By contrast, bleach and other chemicals in non-natural cleaning products can create smells and even toxic odours that are unbearable. Simple ingredients needed for making your own cleaning products include:
– Baking soda
– Citrus seed extract: Usually made from grapefruit seed, this natural preservative is a powerful antimicrobial agent. It is often sold as grapefruit seed extract
– Essential oils: lavender, sweet orange, bergamot, rosemary, eucalyptus or tea tree; thyme; lemon or lemongrass; and peppermint or citronella Cider Vinegar
And here are some great recipes for making your own natural cleaning products:
– All purpose cleaner: nine parts water to one part white vinegar
– For the Bathroom: 10 drops of tea tree oil and three cups of white vinegar. Add to your toilet bowl and let sit for 15 minutes.
– Fill a spray bottle with half water and half vinegar for a shower or bathtub cleaner. Leave for 30 minutes before
rinsing off.
– Glass Cleaner: Mix two cups water, 1/2 cup white or cider vinegar and one to two drops of lemon essential oil.
– Tile Grout Cleaner: Mix one part water and three parts baking soda mixed into a paste. Apply to grout and let sit; and then scrub.
– Cookware : Use sea salt with a little lemon juice or essential oil and scrub. Also, try baking soda and water made into a paste.
If you decide to purchase natural cleaning products instead of making them at home, there are just a couple of qualities to look out for:
– Nontoxic / Fragrance free
– Biobased / Reduced and recyclable packaging
– No VOCs / Pesticide Free
– Biodegradable
Feng Shui principles are becoming so widespread, you can get some great natural brands at the local health food store. Now even grocery stores carry them.
By Amanda Collins
Your home can be arranged in ways that either block or support you to be the best version of yourself. A supportive home nurtures, inspires and becomes a sacred space in which to live and thrive.
Start at the start – the first thing you see when you enter your home defines how you perceive it. People who see the bedroom as soon as they step in may feel tired. If you see the dining room your guests will eat and run. If you see your kitchen first, your first thought will be to eat or go back and forth to the fridge even if you already know what’s in it. Place a plant or hang a curtain to divert attention from the kitchen. Create a different focal point with a beautiful artwork on the opposite wall to invite your energy in the other direction. Place a mirror at eye level on the fridge to look yourself in the eye, the window to the soul, and ask yourself if you are really hungry and really need this? Also add a mirror above your stove to place yourself in a powerful position when you are cooking.
Is your fridge covered in magnets? Avoid this magnetic pull and instead, keep only one magnet with an affirmation: “I love my body and feed it natural healthy foods.” Bring in nature and healthy choices by growing fresh herbs and greenery in your kitchen window and create a clutter-free kitchen with a sense of freshness and lightness. Clean out the fridge, pantry and cupboards – I recommend taking everything out, and then, piece by piece, putting back only what you use.
When it comes to colours, reds, oranges or bright yellow on the walls, plates or placemats in the kitchen or dining room will stimulate your appetite so choose earthy colours such as cream, tans, blues and greens to relax the nervous system. A bowl of fresh fruit on the table also suggests healthy choices, and makes an accessible snack. Keep the energy flowing by allowing only what you use out on the counter and place sharp knives in a drawer out of sight.
Make eating a sacred ritual by decorating the table with fresh flowers and using good china for meals. Bless your food and show gratitude for it. Try not to eat dinner sitting down watching television, give yourself the gift of time and chew your food 12 times per bite! Calming crystals and minerals such as blue lace agate or sodalite can also help quiet your appetite and slow down the pace of your meal. The slower you eat, the less likely you are to overeat.
In your closet, get rid of old clothes you have been saving for “when I lose weight.” Holding onto clothes that don’t fit symbolises holding on to old behaviour patterns. Keep only clothes that honour you and that help you accept and love yourself, as you are right now.
Display images of vibrant health, including a picture of yourself exercising and enjoying it! When working out, keep
a bit of the fiery gemstone garnet in your pocket to enhance your strength and endurance. Finally, uplift your mood at home with citrus scents by adding a few drops of lemon oil to spring water in a diffuser. Then play some dance music to get your chi energy up and your feet moving!
Calculating your Feng Shui element and trigram.
By Amanda Collins
Finding out your personal Feng Shui element can allow you to bring things in to your environment that will feed you to thrive and help you to position yourself in directions that will improve flow. Essence Colors are colours that feed you. For example, if you’re a number 9, then your element is fire. Wood is the element that feeds fire, so bringing in little amounts of red/sunlight, red colors and wood or plants will help support you in your home – red because it represents the fire element. Your essence colours also help to support your energy and are the best colours for things that touch your body, such as clothing, bed sheets, even the colour of your car. Also bring in wood and green colours, as these represent wood – which feeds the fire!
Your Personal Best Direction is your best location for prosperity and great fame and it’s recommended to have your back face this direction for productivity. When setting up your desk both at home or in the office, position yourself with your back to this direction. In your living room and dining room again position your back to these directions and you will be constantly supported while sitting. If you want to improve sleep, put the headboard of your bed facing the best sleeping direction.
Calculating the Male Trigram
1. Subtract 1 from the birth year if born between January 1st and February 5th.
2. Add all the digits of your birth year until it reduces to a single number.
3. Subtract this single number from 11. The result is your Trigram number.
4. If the result is 5, the gua becomes 2. (i.e., a man born on 1/23/1978 would use 1977 – see rule #1, 1+9+7+7=24, 2+4=6, 11-6=5, 5 becomes 2)
Calculating the Female Trigram
1. Steps one and two are the same as above.
3. Add 4 to this single number. The result is your Trigram number.
4. If the result is 5, the gua becomes 8. (i.e., a woman born on 1/23/1978 would use 1977, 1+9+7+7=24, 2+4=6, 6+4=10, 1+0=1)
Your Number is 1 and Your Element is Water
- You are flexible, yet focused and determined. You’re empathetic, artistic and given to deep thought but tend to worry too much and may be overly sensitive.
- Essence Colours: Black, indigo or dark blue
- Colours that feed you: Gold, silver and grey.
- Element that feeds you: Metal
- Water’s shape: Wavy and curvy patterns
- Water material: Metal fountains, aquariums and pools
- Personal Best direction: Southeast
- Best location for sleeping: North
This is a sneak peek, read the rest of the article in the winter 2015 issue of Positive Life. Subscribe | Stockists
By Amanda Collins.
Your surroundings have a powerful effect on what you attract into your life. When the energy around you is blocked or unbalanced, your prosperity, health and relationships can be affected. Feng Shui improvements free up and enhance the flow of positive energy, remove negative influences and allow you to attract the prosperity and abundance you deserve.
To determine the flow in your environment ask yourself when you enter your home whether your energy rises or falls? Close your eyes and notice how you feel. What gets in your way? Where do you flow smoothly? Are any areas blocked off from you? Do all doors open fully? Are there large piles of clutter?
To invite in prosperity, start clearing the clutter. Throw out junk and get rid of things such as old papers, empty boxes and broken items to energise your home. This de-cluttering should extend to your car, purse, garage, computer inbox and desktop. Next, decide which broken items are draining your prosperity and which can be repaired. Let go of anything broken, cracked or chipped that cannot be repaired. Replace burned out light bulbs, for if your rooms are dark, so is your financial future. Repair broken mirrors for they reflect how you see yourself. Clean windows for they tell you how you look out on the world.
Dead plants symbolise dead energy; replace them with living plants to grow your wealth. Tighten loose doorknobs and handles. If your handles are loose you cannot get a grip on your money! Tighten them and wealth will be within you grasp.
A new wallet or purse attracts money. Also remove scraps of paper, credit cards for closed accounts or for those you never use. Be sure your wallet is clean, neat, and organised
Areas to Enhance, In Order of Importance
- Front Door: This is where all the energy enters. A clean welcoming front door attracts prosperity.
- Southeast: Associated with wealth, make sure there is no clutter in this area. Write affirmations to support wealth and place them here, as well as a symbolic item that makes you feel abundant.
- North: Associated with career. Make sure this area is open and flowing. Write and place an affirmation about the success of your career.
- Northwest: Also called ‘heaven’s gate’ and symbolising helpful people. Keep this area bright and open, with no trashcans outside or inside so you can create a clear channel for energy to enter into your home and life.
- Kitchen: Clear clutter including old, stale foods in cupboards and refrigerator. Use your oven; an unused stove implies untapped resources and opportunities. Kitchen counters should be clear with only items you use on a daily basis.
Lastly, other keys to prosperity are related to your beliefs about your deservedness. Do you really believe you are deserving and can be prosperous? I invite you to repeat these affirmations daily to attract prosperity: I deserve to be prosperous and wealthy; The more I give, the more I receive; I am a trust fund baby of the universe; I am a magnet to money.
Money is a form of energy that needs to flow through your life, not just into it. Living generously within your means makes space for even greater abundance. If you don’t yet have ample money to share, give as generously as you can of your time, energy, compassion and appreciation. Express gratitude. The more you are grateful for what you have, no matter how small, the more you will have to be grateful for, including money.
This is taken from our autumn 2015 issue. Subscribe to have the next four issues delivered direct to your door.
This is taken from our Summer 2015 issue. Subscribe here to have the autumn issue and the following three issues delivered direct to your door.
Making space for two.
By Amanda Collins
When you enter your home, you should feel your spirits rise, for your home is the outward expression of your inner life. If you’re ready to attract love or enhance your present relationship then prepare your home as if you are already in that loving relationship.
The first step is to make your home clutter free. Clear out anything from past relationships – gifts, photos, love letters, anything with an old love’s energy on it. This supports you in letting them go. Next, create an open space in your closet for a future partner’s things. Add eight empty hangers to say “I am welcoming you into my life. I have space and time for you.” Make room in your drawers too, creating equal space for your belongings and your partner’s. Give unwanted items to someone who needs them, a charity, or a recycling centre, always honouring the earth as you decide where such things need to go.
Your bedroom is the key to creating a sacred home that welcomes the love of your life. Televisions or exercise paraphernalia don’t belong here, and electronic equipment should be placed in an office or separate work area. Arrange items such as nightstands and lamps in pairs. Within those pairs, organise items of similar size; if one lamp on a nightstand is much larger than another, this will create an imbalance in the relationship. Whatever you do on one side of a pair, do the same on the other.
Display artwork that suggests romance and intimacy. Anything that does not serve the bedroom’s function, that of offering rest and romance should be removed; this includes photos of friends and family. Colour matters too. Earth tones are soothing and grounding but you might also add small accents in the red spectrum, such as pinks, maroon, or berry. Try to create a room that is neither too feminine or too masculine. Find a balance so both feminine and masculine energies will feel welcomed and honoured in the space.
Assure yourself that you are supported in life and love. Your bed should be positioned so there is enough space to walk on either side. You should not sleep in line with the door but should see the door from your bed. It is best not to sleep under a window or have the bathroom on the other side of the headboard. And size matters when it comes to your mattress! If you are single with a single mattress, you will stay single, while a King size mattress doesn’t encourage romance either. Queen size is perfect for love. It is best not to sleep on a mattress from a previous relationship, but if you must, give it a clearing with some sage. Also remove clutter from under the bed so energy can flow freely.
Rose quartz is the gem for love, compassion, healing and romance. Place two pieces on your nightstand; carry the gem in your purse or car. As jewellery, allow your gem to rest on your heart. As the southwest corner of your home is the area for love, place two pieces of rose quartz or two peonies – the flowers for love and romance, here. Treat yourself lovingly every day and do not wait for someone else to. Use your best bedding of satin or silk and wear your best underwear and nightgowns. Light your candles; buy yourself flowers. To attract love you need to be, first of all, completely loving with yourself. Be in that vibration of love in order to receive it.
amandacollins.com | internationalfengshuischool.com
This is taken from our Summer 2015 issue. Subscribe here to have the autumn issue and the following three issues delivered direct to your door.
This is an excerpt from our Summer 2015 issue. Subscribe here to have the summer issue and the following three issues delivered direct to your door.
Making space for two.
By Amanda Collins
When you enter your home, you should feel your spirits rise, for your home is the outward expression of your inner life. If you’re ready to attract love or enhance your present relationship then prepare your home as if you are already in that loving relationship.
The first step is to make your home clutter free. Clear out anything from past relationships – gifts, photos, love letters, anything with an old love’s energy on it. This supports you in letting them go. Next, create an open space in your closet for a future partner’s things. Add eight empty hangers to say “I am welcoming you into my life. I have space and time for you.” Make room in your drawers too, creating equal space for your belongings and your partner’s. Give unwanted items to someone who needs them, a charity, or a recycling centre, always honouring the earth as you decide where such things need to go.
Your bedroom is the key to creating a sacred home that welcomes the love of your life. Televisions or exercise paraphernalia don’t belong here, and electronic equipment should be placed in an office or separate work area. Arrange items such as nightstands and lamps in pairs. Within those pairs, organise items of similar size; if one lamp on a nightstand is much larger than another, this will create an imbalance in the relationship. Whatever you do on one side of a pair, do the same on the other.
Read the rest of the article in our summer issue.
This is an excerpt from our Summer 2015 issue. Subscribe here to have the summer issue and the following three issues delivered direct to your door.
This is an article from our spring 2015 issue, out now. Stockists | Subscribe in time for the summer issue.
Spring is one of many powerful times to create fresh new energy in your home, to welcome positive energy and let go of the old. Space Clearing is the art of cleansing and consecrating spaces and an effective technique for clearing and revitalising the energy in buildings. Other potent times to clear space are whenever seasons change, days of new or full moons, after illness, after visitors you did not feel good about, after stress-inducing changes or transitions in life, and after a remodel.
Everything in the Universe is comprised of energy, and that energy in places you live, work, shop and socialise can have far-reaching effects on your physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well-being. If an argument, divorce or robbery occurs in a home, and that energy does not get cleared, it can build.
An accumulation of clutter, frequent arguments or broken objects may signal its presence. But clearing a house energetically can help you fall in love with it once again, support you in getting back on track emotionally, regaining your interest in life and the future and aid clearing the way for prosperity and productivity in business.
How to Space Clear
Protect your own energy before clearing your home. Visualise surrounding yourself in white light that grows and expands further outside your body, sealing you in a protective cloud. Be sure that children and pets are not present.
You can choose several modalities of clearing such as playing a singing bowl and burning sage. Or you might walk around clapping your hands, singing or chanting in the space. Go into each corner and follow your intuition about moving into closets and under tables – wherever you feel the need for cleansing.
Open all doors and windows to allow fresh air to circulate. Meditate and ground yourself. Call upon your guides, angels, ascended masters, ancestors – whomever you feel will assist.
Light a candle and state your intention: What would you like to achieve during this space clearing? Perhaps “May my space be filled with love energy for the highest good of all.”
Start inside the house with your back to the front door. Face into the home, which should be as clear, clean and tidy as possible before you start. Once you begin, continue clockwise through the house.
Clear space with the powerful purifier of love in your heart, and use sounds such as a bell, chimes or a singing bowl. Burn sage, sweetgrass or cedar. If you are burning herbs you will need a container, such as an abalone shell or clay bowl, to hold your smudging material. Add some sand to the bottom of this shell or bowl.
The sage stick does not need to flame – the smoke should rise straight up to the divine.If you prefer not to use smoke, a spritz such as sage or rose spray is a viable alternative.
At the end of the clearing, seal in your positive intention, thank your spirit guides and ask that the smoke and sound vibrations carry all negative energies away.
Visualise the house surrounded in a ball of white light and place a water fountain at the front door or front gate. Keep doors and windows open for as long as possible, and give thanks for your life and home.
This is an excerpt from our spring 2015 issue, out now. Read the full how to in our print issue or online later on in the spring. Stockists | Subscribe
Inner space, the final frontier.
By Amanda Collins
Spring is one of many powerful times to create fresh new energy in your home, to welcome positive energy and let go of the old. Space Clearing is the art of cleansing and consecrating spaces and an effective technique for clearing and revitalising the energy in buildings. Other potent times to clear space are whenever seasons change, days of new or full moons, after illness, after visitors you did not feel good about, after stress-inducing changes or transitions in life, and after a remodel.
Everything in the Universe is comprised of energy, and that energy in places you live, work, shop and socialise can have far-reaching effects on your physical, emotional, mental and spiritual well-being. If an argument, divorce or robbery occurs in a home, and that energy does not get cleared, it can build.
An accumulation of clutter, frequent arguments or broken objects may signal its presence. But clearing a house energetically can help you fall in love with it once again, support you in getting back on track emotionally, regaining your interest in life and the future and aid clearing the way for prosperity and productivity in business.
This is an excerpt from our spring 2015 issue, out now. Read the full how to in our print issue or online later on in the spring. Stockists | Subscribe